When I think about or take time to thoughtfully gaze upon the work of engineers --- iconic bridges, clean water making its way to my glass, or the infrastructure that makes commerce possible -- I start to feel just like Madeline.

Whomever is elected president in November will face the challenge of meeting critical infrastructure needs with increasingly strained resources. While President Obama and Mitt Romney differ in their philosophical approaches to solving infrastructure and transportation problems, both have established track records of supporting needed public works projects and taking steps to encourage funding.